Qake indonesia 20190802
Resident stand outside an apartment block after a strong earthquake hit the area around Jakarta on August 2, 2019. Image Credit: AFP

JAKARTA: Indonesia lifted a tsunami warning late Friday after a powerful earthquake struck off the southern coast of heavily populated Java island, sparking widespread panic as residents fled their homes.

"The early tsunami warning has ended," the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency said in a brief statement.

The 6.8 magnitude quake struck offshore at a depth 42 kilometres (26 miles), some 150 kilometres (90 miles) from Labuan, southwest of the capital Jakarta, according to the United States Geological Survey.

Indonesia's disaster agency initially pegged the quake at magnitude 7.4 and a depth of 10 kilometres, warning it could spark a tsunami.

Residents in Jakarta fled their homes as buildings in the megacity swayed from the force of the quake.

"The chandelier in my apartment was shaking and I just ran from the 19th floor," 50-year-old Elisa told AFP.


At least two people were killed and thousands were forced from their homes after a major 7.3-magnitude earthquake hit the remote Maluku islands in eastern Indonesia this month.


